Waukee student with Down syndrome is homecoming queen

Waukee High School senior Katie Ball is crowned homecoming queen Thursday, Oct. 2, 2014. Ball, 17, is involved in many extracurricular activities. She also has Down syndrome.

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Katie Ball, left, a senior at Waukee High School, practices with classmates for the upcoming Powder Puff football game, which is part of 2014 homecoming activities at Waukee. Ball was nominated for homecoming queen by her classmates.(Photo: Bryon Houlgrave/the register)Buy Photo

"It's just been such a great experience for everybody, and we feel honored to be part of the court with her," said McDevitt, who also was up for the queen title.

Other districts across the state have seen students with special needs become part of their homecoming courts in recent years, including Urbandale in 2012, Waverly-Shell Rock in 2013 and Johnston this year.

Those schools, and others across the country, are starting a new trend of inclusion in one of the most memorable parts of the high school experience: the homecoming court.

Hannah McDevitt, 17, of Urbandale, (right) congratulates Katie Ball, 17, of Waukee, as she is named homecoming queen Thursday, Oct. 2, 2014, during the homecoming coronation at the Waukee High School Fieldhouse. Scott Morgan/For the Register

Ally Jacobi, 17, of West Des Moines, (right) hugs Katie Ball, 17, of Waukee, as she is named homecoming queen Thursday, Oct. 2, 2014, during the homecoming coronation at the Waukee High School Fieldhouse. Scott Morgan/For the Register

Kyle Boulanger, 17, of Waukee, and Olivia Lacona, 17, of Urbandale, walk as the homecoming court is introduced Thursday, Oct. 2, 2014, during the homecoming coronation at the Waukee High School Fieldhouse. Scott Morgan/For the Register

Patrick Gray, 17, of West Des Moines, and Katie Ball, 17, of Waukee, wave as the homecoming court is introduced Thursday, Oct. 2, 2014, during the homecoming coronation at the Waukee High School Fieldhouse. Scott Morgan/For the Register

Hannah McDevitt, 17, of Urbandale, and Trevor Allen, 17, of Ankeny, fake a hip bump as the homecoming court is introduced Thursday, Oct. 2, 2014, during the homecoming coronation at the Waukee High School Fieldhouse. Scott Morgan/For the Register

Graham Vogt, 17, of Urbandale, and Ally Jacobi, 17, of West Des Moines, shake hands as the homecoming court is introduced Thursday, Oct. 2, 2014, during the homecoming coronation at the Waukee High School Fieldhouse. Scott Morgan/For the Register

Homecoming king and queen Patrick Gray, 17, of West Des Moines, and Katie Ball, 17, of Waukee, are photographed Thursday, Oct. 2, 2014, during the homecoming coronation at the Waukee High School Fieldhouse. Scott Morgan/For the Register

Waukee High School graduates Emily Perez, 19, of Lexington, Ken. (left), and Mara Mapes, 19, of Urbandale, wave to friends Thursday, Oct. 2, 2014, during the homecoming coronation at the Waukee High School Fieldhouse. Scott Morgan/For the Register

Beth Rydberg, an advocate with the nonprofit group Disability Rights Iowa, said students with disabilities being named to homecoming courts is "becoming a much more common occurrence."

"At some point this should be a non-story. This is the way it's supposed to happen," she said.

When Joel Kafer was named homecoming king last month in Johnston, "he loved it," said his mother, Nancy Kafer, on Thursday.

"It was an amazing experience for all of us. We couldn't have been more proud of him and his class," Kafer said. "When he started school we never expected anything like this would ever happen."

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Johnston senior Joel Kafer is named homecoming king during a ceremony before a school football game Sept. 26. Kafer is one of several students with special needs who have been part of Iowa homecoming courts in recent years.(Photo: David Dolmage/For the Register)

Karen Ball said her daughter's classmates have accepted Katie as a peer rather than an outsider.

"They see her as a person with Down syndrome sort of very secondarily," Ball said.

Katie was in a school production of "The Wizard of Oz" last year and has recently been working with the school's Friday Night Live thespian troupe. She's also a member of the girls' swimming team.

"You almost have to watch a (swimming) meet and experience it to appreciate what she contributes to a team or any activity she's involved in," Waukee Activities Director Jim Duea said.

Katie Ball said she has been looking at perhaps going through the University of Iowa REACH program, a two-year certificate program for people with disabilities.

Her mother said she hopes experiences similar to those that have happened at Waukee will follow her daughter as she makes the transition from high school to the working world.

"She's like a little ray of sunshine," Karen Ball said.

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Katie Ball, center, a senior at Waukee, practices with classmates for the upcoming Powder Puff football game, part of the 2014 homecoming activities at Waukee High School.(Photo: Bryon Houlgrave/the Register)